How long does the average marriage last? No, no, donât look at your watch. It isnât that short. Itâs eight years.

The divorce rate across the U.S. is about 50 percent. Alas, in California itâs 75 percent.

Happy Valentineâs Day!

One more statistic. What is the percentage of marriages that last 60 years or more? 1 percent.

In that very special category are Dick and Anne Morandi of Corona, who will celebrate their 63rd anniversary on May 5. I spent time with them the other day in their home at Valencia Terrace, a senior community, hoping they would share their recipe for such a long marriage.

Think of it. When they wed in 1951, Harry Truman was president, Gen. MacArthur lost his command in Korea, and color TV was introduced.

So the question is, âArenât the two of you sick and tired of each other by now?â

No, I donât mean that. The question is, âHow have you two lovely people brought such happiness to each other for so long?â

Dick, who is 90, explained. âAnne had this smile on her face when I came home from work. So I made sure I came home every night.â

Anne, 85, showed me that smile as she responded. âWhenever we had a difference, Iâd say, âIâll bet you a milkshake Iâm right.â Well, by the time we got the answer, we forgot who said what.â

What they havenât forgotten is how they met.

âIt was in June of 1950 at Rubyâs Drive-in at 13th Street and Market in Riverside. Dick was stationed at March Air Force Base and drove up with some buddies. And I arrived with some girlfriends. The boys asked for our phone numbers.â

A month later, on July 4, as Dick and Anne were watching fireworks, war planes headed for Korea flew over the crowd. Dick got his orders three days later.

They became engaged when he returned home in February, and married three months later at the old First Baptist Church in Riverside.

Oh, thatâs another thing. Dick was raised Catholic while Anne was Baptist. Early in their marriage, they decided to compromise â" another ingredient in their recipe â" and joined Hope Lutheran Church.

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